By JASON DEAREN and MICHAEL REZENDES (Associated Press)
Police in Virginia arrested the former bishop after he was indicted on charges of sexually abusing his daughter on a school trip and at home in Idaho 20 years ago.
Authorities had been looking for John Goodrich after a grand jury found enough evidence to charge him with four felonies, including rape and sexual battery against his child.
The charges came to light following the AP investigation, which revealed how the church used a risk management playbook to keep child sexual abuse cases secret, including allegations against Goodrich.
Chelsea Goodrich stated that she hopes this case will bring justice for the abuse she suffered as a child, and she appreciates that Virginia is taking the matter seriously.
When contacted, John Goodrich's attorney declined to comment, and the Williamsburg Police Department did not respond to requests for comment on the case.
Goodrich's arrest in Virginia comes nearly eight years after a prior arrest in Idaho on similar charges, which were dropped due to a witness's refusal to testify.
The church excommunicated Goodrich after a key witness, another Mormon bishop, refused to testify about a confession John had made to him.
The AP's investigation was based on audio recordings of Chelsea's meetings with a church attorney, during which concerns were expressed about John's actions, but the attorney cited a loophole that exempted clergy from reporting such confessions.
Chelsea sought help from the church attorney to get the bishop to testify about her father's confession, but he explained that the law exempted clergy from having to disclose information from a spiritual confession.
The prosecutors in Idaho dropped the earlier case because they didn't have that testimony anymore.
Rytting used the clergy privilege as part of his risk management plan in the Goodrich matter. He offered $300,000 to Chelsea and her mother in exchange for a confidentiality agreement and a promise to destroy their meeting recordings. The AP obtained similar recordings made by a church member who attended the meetings as Chelsea’s advocate.
The church used its sex abuse Helpline, which John Goodrich’s bishop had called after his confession. As AP revealed in 2022, the Helpline is a phone number for bishops to report child sex abuse. However, instead of providing victims with counseling, the Helpline often reports abuse allegations to a church law firm.
In a statement to the AP for its recent investigation, the church said that the abuse of a child or any individual is inexcusable. The church also mentioned that John Goodrich has not been readmitted to church membership after his excommunication.
After the news coverage of the Idaho case, another alleged victim came forward. A 53-year-old single mother accused John Goodrich of nonconsensual sex using the drug Halcion, which he often used to sedate patients during dental procedures. She claimed that Goodrich drugged her the previous July after she ended a sexual relationship with him.
John Goodrich reached a plea agreement in that case and avoided sex crimes charges.
Chelsea Goodrich approached the AP with her story because her father was still free and practicing dentistry in Idaho, where he had access to children.
Goodrich turned himself in to police in Williamsburg after authorities spent two weeks searching for him. He posted bond and will be allowed to leave Virginia during legal proceedings.
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